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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to improvements in computer network
interfaces, and more particularly, but without limitation, to a system,
method, and memory for creating an itinerary list for any INTERNET or
hypertext interface.
2. Background Information and Description of the Related Art
A user interacts with objects on a computer network using a "browser". A
browser is a graphical user interface that allows users to navigate
through the INTERNET. On the INTERNET, the user may navigate through
various "sites", such as file systems, HTML documents, and file transfer
protocol (FTP) sites. Conventional INTERNET browsers allow the user to
explore these various sites using hypertext links. A hypertext link
contains the name and URL (uniform resource locator) address of an
INTERNET site. Typically, the browser displays hypertext links in a
different shade of color from other text on the screen so that the user
can readily identify the hypertext links. If a user clicks on a hypertext
link, the browser takes the user from the current document to another
document represented by that selected hypertext link. In turn, the
destination document may contain additional hypertext links that go to yet
more documents. In this manner, the user may navigate through multiple
hierarchical layers of documents of various sites by continuing to select
hypertext links.
However, there are certain disadvantages and limitations in conventional
browsers. For example, suppose a page displays three hypertext links
pointing to sites of particular interest to the user. The user begins by
selecting a first hypertext link and may decide to navigate through
several other hypertext links extending from the first link. When the user
has finished navigating the path from the first hypertext link, he must
return to the original page to select the second hypertext link. However,
to do so, the user must backtrack through the links to the original page,
whereupon the user can then select the second hypertext link. The obvious
limitation of this procedure is that the user must select one link, look
at it and follow its path, back up through a number of links to return to
the original page, then select another link, navigate through it, back up,
etc. This forward, backward, forward, backward jaunt through links is very
tedious and time consuming. Also, in many cases the user cannot even
navigate backward because the link's server is busy.
In an attempt to solve this problem, some conventional browsers utilize
quicklists. A quicklist (also known as hotlist) is a stored list of links
in some conventional browser, quicklists are permanent until the user
manually deletes a link from the list. To store a link within the
quicklist, the user must first open/visit the document represented by the
link and then select an "add" button to add the link to the quicklist.
Alternatively, the user may utilize the edit function of the quicklist to
manually type in the name and address of the link.
Some other conventional browsers allow a user to save a link to their
quicklist without first visiting it. However, the user may decide after
visiting it that they do not wish to continue saving it. Deletion of a
link in a quicklist can be tedious because the user must first find the
link in what may be a very large list and then manually delete the link.
Therefore, because it is tedious work to delete a link in a quicklist,
users frequently visit the site before they add it to their quicklist. As
such, the user must do all the backtracking if one page has multiple links
of interest.
Therefore, there is a great demand for an interface browser that allows the
user to store links into a temporary list that will not require manual
deletion and will allow the user to visit multiple sites/documents on a
page without backtracking. The user should be able to select any of the
links in the itinerary at any time without backtracking, even if the user
has navigated far away from the original page.
SUMMARY
Accordingly, a uniquely programmed computer system, computer-implemented
method, and computer readable memory embodying computer-readable detail
logic direct a computer system to create a temporary list of links. The
present invention creates the list of links such that manual deletion of
the links in the list is not required.
The method comprises the first step of placing the computer system in an
itinerary mode, wherein the links lose their original function of
opening/visiting the corresponding site when selected. A link has an
original function of opening/visiting a corresponding site when selected.
Accordingly, a link includes the name and address of the site. The second
step includes displaying the list in a secondary window on a first portion
of the display. The third step includes presenting at least one link in a
second portion of the display so that the user can select a link to be
placed in the list. The fourth step includes opening/visiting and
displaying the site corresponding to the selected link in the second
portion of the display in response to a selection of at least one link
placed in the list.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a browser
that allows a user to select an itinerary of links without having to
open/visit the site represented by the link or delete links that are no
longer wanted.
It is a further object to provide a browser that allows the user to select
and open/visit any of the links in the itinerary at any time without
backtracking, even if the user has navigated far away from the original
page.
These and other objects, advantages, and features will become even more
apparent in light of the following drawings and detailed description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of a computer system for use with
the present invention.
FIG. 2 illustrates a frontal display diagram of the browser in accordance
with the present invention.
FIG. 3 illustrates a frontal display diagram of the browser in accordance
with the present invention.
FIG. 4 illustrates a flowchart of detailed logic according to the present
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The preferred embodiment includes a computer-implemented method, a uniquely
programmed computer system, and a memory embodying detailed logic for
directing a computer system to store links into a temporary list that will
not require manual deletion and will allow the user to visit multiple
sites/documents on a page without backtracking.
The present invention is practiced in a laptop computer or, alternatively,
in the computer system illustrated in FIG. 1. Computer system 100 includes
central processing unit (CPU) 10, such as an IBM's.TM. PowerPC.TM. 601 or
Intel's.TM. 486 microprocessor for processing cache 15, random access
memory (RAM) 14, read only memory 16, and non-volatile RAM (NVRAM) 32. One
or more disks 20, controlled by I/O adapter 18, provide long term storage.
A variety of other storage media may be employed, including tapes, CD-ROM,
and WORM drives. Removable storage media may also be provided to store
data or computer process instructions.
Instructions and data from the desktop of any suitable operating system,
such as Sun Solaris.TM., Microsoft's Windows NT.TM., IBM's OS/2.TM.,
Apple's System 7.TM., control CPU 10 from RAM 14. Accordingly, the desktop
executes from RAM 14. However, in the preferred embodiment, an IBM RISC
System/6000.TM. runs the AIX.TM. operating system. As previously
described, however, one skilled in the art readily recognizes that other
hardware platforms and operating systems may be utilized to implement the
present invention.
Users communicate with computer system 100 through I/O devices (i.e., user
controls) controlled by user interface adapter 22. Display 38 displays
information to the user, while keyboard 24, pointing device 26, and
speaker 28 allow the user to direct the computer system. Communications
adapter 34 controls communications between this computer system and other
processing units connected to a network by network interface 40. Display
adapter 36 controls communications between this computer system and
display 38.
Referring to FIG. 2, the preferred embodiment includes an INTERNET browser
for displaying window 200 on display 38. For ease and explanation, the
following description describes the browser as performing unique functions
and features. In actuality, the browser merely directs CPU 10 to perform
those functions and features.
Window 200 is a two-dimensional workspace for displaying text, hypertext
links 202, 204, 206 and 208, menu bar 210, itinerary list 214, and
drop-down list 226. The diagonal hatching marks on hypertext links 202,
204, 206 and 208 indicate to the user that they are indeed hypertext
links. Alternatively, hypertext links 202, 204, 206 and 208 could be
represented in a different color from the other text.
Menu bar 210 allows the user to select various operations. In the preferred
embodiment, the user may "turn on" the itinerary function by selecting
file button 228 using a pointing device. Selecting buttons using a
pointing device (e.g., mouse and mouse pointer) is well known in the
computer art and need not be further described. When the user clicks on
file button 228, drop-down menu 226 appears. The user then scrolls down
drop-down menu 226 to select "build itinerary" button 212. When selected,
build itinerary button 212 places the browser in an "itinerary" mode. The
user knows that the browser is in the itinerary mode because mouse pointer
216 changes shape to an "I". Alternatively, any shaped pointer could be
utilized when in the itinerary mode. When in the itinerary mode, if the
user selects a hypertext link, the browser will not load the document
represented by the URL, but rather will add that link and its URL to
itinerary list 214. Conversely, if the browser is in the non-itinerary
mode, a selection of a hypertext link would cause the browser to load the
document represented by the URL.
Itinerary list 214 is a small window that remains on the screen while
active and may be placed anywhere on the screen. However, once the session
ends or the user closes itinerary list 214, the browser clears the
contents of itinerary list 214. Therefore, itinerary list 214 is not
permanent storage, but is merely a temporary itinerary of links that the
user intends to visit in the future. The user may move the browser from
"itinerary" mode to "non-itinerary" mode by selecting "add off" button
220. Conversely, "add on" button 218 moves the browser from the
non-itinerary mode to the itinerary mode. To remove all the links from
itinerary list 214, the user merely selects "clear" button 224. "Close"
button 222 moves the browser into the non-itinerary mode, clears the list,
and removes itinerary list 214 from the screen. Additional buttons, such
as a help button and/or a cancel button, could be added.
Referring again to FIG. 2, because the user selected yahoo hypertext link
202 and scuba dive hypertext link 208 when the browser was in the
itinerary mode, the browser added them to itinerary list 214. The user
then single clicked over yahoo hypertext link 202 in itinerary list 214 to
open/visit its corresponding site, which is illustrated in FIG. 3.
FIG. 3 illustrates "yahoo" window 300, which, in turn, displays a page of
links. In this example, the user selected a number of hypertext links from
"yahoo" window 300 to be placed in itinerary list 214. The links in
itinerary list 214 (e.g., yahoo hypertext link 202) change color once they
have been selected and opened/visited.
FIG. 4 illustrates a flowchart of detailed logic for implementing the
preferred embodiment. At 410, the browser makes a determination if more
events need to be processed. If so, at 412, the browser makes a
determination if the itinerary mode has changed state, either from
itinerary mode to non-itinerary mode or vice versa. This could occur if
the user has clicked on build itinerary button 212, "add on" button 218,
"add off" button 220 or "close" button 222 (please see FIG. 2). At 414,
the browser makes a determination if the itinerary mode has been "turned
on." This would occur if the browser detects that the user clicked on
build itinerary button 212 or "add on" button 218. If turned on, at 416,
the browser sets a variable "IT mode"=TRUE and, at 418, generates a "TURN
ON DISPLAY LIST" signal event (i.e., Display=TRUE).
Returning to 414, if the itinerary mode was turned off (e.g., the user
clicked on "add off" button 220 or "close" button 222), at 420, the
browser sets the variable "IT mode"=FALSE and, at 422, the browser
generates a "TURN OFF DISPLAY LIST" event (i.e., Display =FALSE). Control
returns to 410 where a determination is made if more events exist.
Returning to 412, if the browser makes a determination that the itinerary
mode has not changed state, at 424, the browser determines if the event is
a "link selected event". Such an event would occur if the browser detects
that the user clicked on one of hypertext links 202, 204, 206 or 208. If
so, at 426, the browser determines if the itinerary mode is "ON" or "OFF"
by checking the state of "IT mode" variable to see if it has been set TRUE
or FALSE. If set TRUE, at 428, the browser retrieves the URL address of
the selected hypertext link and, at 430, retrieves the name of the
document (i.e., the text representing the link). At 432, the browser
generates an "ADD TO LIST" event. This event indicates that the selected
document needs to be added to itinerary list 214. Control returns to 410,
where the browser processes more events.
If 412 and 424 were both "NO", at 434, the browser determines if a "LINK
EXECUTION" event has been generated. Such an event would have generated if
the user had clicked on a hypertext link displayed in itinerary list 214,
such as hypertext links 202 or 208. If so, at 436, the browser retrieves
the URL of the selected hypertext link and, at 438, fetches the document
represented by the hypertext link. Control returns to 410.
At 440, the browser determines if a "TURN ON" or "TURN OFF DISPLAY LIST"
event has occurred. This event would have been generated at either step
418 or 422. If Display=TRUE at 442, at 444, the browser displays itinerary
list 214. At 446, the browser sets a variable "ITSTATE"=TRUE. At 448, if
Display=FALSE, the browser hides itinerary list 214 and, at 450, sets the
variable "ITSTATE"=FALSE. Control returns to 410.
If 410, 412, 424, 434 and 440 are all "NO", at 452, the browser determines
if the "ADD TO LIST" event was generated at 432. In other words, the
browser determines if the user attempted to add a document to itinerary
list 214. If so, at 454, the browser adds the URL and name of the document
to a database of documents (not shown) and, at 456, adds the name to the
GUI (i.e., displays the name to the user in itinerary list 214). Control
returns to 410.
If 410, 412, 424, 434, 440, and 452 are all "NO", at 458, the browser
determines if a "CLEAR ITLIST" event occurred. This event would have
occurred if the user had clicked on "clear" button 224 (or a keyboard
equivalent). If so, at 460 and 462, the browser erases all entries in
itinerary list 214 and in the database (not shown). Control returns to
410.
At 464, other events are processed, if any exist, and control returns to
410 where, if no more events are to be processed, the flow ends.
The flow of execution of the preferred embodiment is as follows:
__________________________________________________________________________
Itinerary List Code
__________________________________________________________________________
TERMS:
ItList
Itinerary list
ItList dialog
dialog box (window) containing itinerary list
ItList database
database containing the itinerary list information
INITIALIZATION - - -
// Set Itinerary Mode to false
//
ItMode = FALSE
// Current state of ItList dialog - hidden or shown (FALSE = hidden)
//
ItState = FALSE
EVENT PROCESSING - - -
WHILE (more events to process)
//
// This event is caused by the user selecting the Start Itinerary
// mode. This can be done by the user selecting a menu item or
// performing a keyboard combination for instance.
//
(412)
IF (SET.sub.-- ITINERARY.sub.-- MODE Event)
(414)
IF (set mode On)
(410)
ItMode = TRUE //Itinerary mode is ON
(418)
Send.sub.-- Event (DISPLAY.sub.-- ITLIST)
//Show the ItList dialog
ELSE
(420)
ItMode = FALSE //Itinerary mode is OFF
(422)
Send.sub.-- Event (DISPLAY.sub.-- ITLIST)
//Hide the ItList dialog
ENDIF
ENDIF
//
// This event is caused by the end user selecting a hypertext link
// on a web page from within a web browser. This could be from
// the user single clicking with the mouse or if the browser
// supports keyboard traversal, then it would be caused by the
// user selecting the SELECTION Key.
//
(424)
IF (LINK.sub.-- SELECTION Event)
(426)
IF (ItMode is TRUE)
(428)
Get url address of link
(430)
Get title of link
(432)
Send (ADD.sub.-- TO.sub.-- ITLIST Event)
ELSE
ENDIF
ENDIF
//
// Caused when the user selects a link from the ItList dialog.
//
(434)
IF (LINK.sub.-- EXECUTION Event)
(436)
Get ItLink Selected
(438)
Execute ItLink //Fetch the document
ENDIF
//
// Event to display or hide the ItList dialog box.
//
(440)
IF (DISPLAY.sub.-- ITLIST Event)
(442)
IF (show itlist)
(444)
Display ItList dialog box
(446)
ItState = TRUE
ELSE
(448)
Hide ItList dialog box
(450)
ItState = FALSE
ENDIF
//
// Event to add a link to the ItList database and dialog
//
(451)
IF (ADD.sub.-- TO.sub.-- ITLIST Event)
(454)
Add url and title to datebase
(456)
Add title to gui itlist
ENDIF
//
// Event to remove all entries in the ItList database
//
(458)
IF (CLEAR.sub.-- ITLIST Event)
WHILE (More Entries in database)
(460)
Get database entry
(462)
Remove database entry
ENDWHILE
ENDIF
//
(464)
// Process other events
//
IF (Other Events)
process other events
ENDIF
ENDWHILE
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While the invention has been shown and described with reference to
particular embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in
the art that the foregoing and other changes in form and detail may be
made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention,
which is defined only by the following claims.
* * * * *
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